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Grant Analysis

Purpose & Target

This grant aims to drive research that will shape the future regulatory framework for a Digital European Sky (DES). The core objective is to address the impact of automation and Artificial Intelligence (AI) on human roles, enhance Air Traffic Management (ATM) safety, harmonize airspace classifications, and integrate environmental considerations within the aviation sector. Target recipients include organizations involved in aviation research, technology development, air traffic service providers (ATSPs), air navigation service providers (ANSPs), and manufacturers. This is a SECTOR-SPECIFIC grant focused on civil aviation and related technologies. The geographic scope includes European countries, and potentially other non-EU/non-Associated countries with specific funding arrangements. Key filtering criteria for initial screening are a strong focus on aviation, ATM, AI, human factors, and regulatory research in the context of safety and environmental impact. This grant is part of the ongoing SESAR 3 Joint Undertaking Bi-Annual Work Programme, indicating a recurring program context.

Financial Structure

Funding for this grant takes the form of a lump sum, meaning eligible costs are covered by a pre-agreed fixed amount.
The minimum grant amount per project is EUR 1,000,000.
The maximum grant amount per project is EUR 2,000,000.
The total available budget for this specific topic (HORIZON-SESAR-2025-DES-ER-03-WA2-1) is EUR 14,000,000.
The currency for all financial amounts is EUR.
The lump sum model typically implies a 100.0% funding rate of the agreed lump sum, covering all eligible costs within that sum.
Co-financing requirements are not explicitly stated for lump sum grants, as the lump sum is intended to cover the full agreed costs.

Eligibility Requirements

Organizational Type & Structure

Eligible organizations include any legal entity that can participate in Horizon Europe projects. This typically covers: research organizations, universities, public bodies, industry (including manufacturers, airlines, Air Traffic Service Providers (ATSPs), Air Navigation Service Providers (ANSPs)), and SMEs.
A consortium is required for application.

Geographic Location

Organizations from EU Member States are eligible.
Organizations from countries associated with Horizon Europe are eligible.
Specific provisions may allow funding for participants from non-EU/non-Associated Countries, as detailed in the Horizon Europe Programme Guide.
EU Member States include: AT, BE, BG, HR, CY, CZ, DK, EE, FI, FR, DE, GR, HU, IE, IT, LV, LT, LU, MT, NL, PL, PT, RO, SK, SI, ES, SE.

Financial & Operational Capacity

Applicants must meet the financial and operational capacity requirements described in Annex C of the Horizon Europe Work Programme General Annexes.

Legal & Regulatory Compliance

Projects are subject to restrictions for the protection of European communication networks.
Compliance with Council Regulation (EU) 2021/2085 (establishing the SESAR 3 Joint Undertaking) is mandatory.

Application Process

Application Submission

The submission session became available on 2025-04-01.
The application deadline is 2025-09-16.
The submission model is 'single-stage'.
Applications must be submitted through the Electronic Submission Service available on the Funding & Tenders Portal.
Required documentation includes:
- Part A of the standard application form (only Part A is applicable).
- Part B of the SESAR 3 application form (specific to this call).
- A detailed budget table (Horizon Europe Lump Sum format).
Existing draft proposals can be accessed by logging into the Funding & Tenders Portal and navigating to the 'My Proposals' page.

Grant Agreement & Duration

The maximum project duration is 30 months, which includes a dedicated 6-month period at the end for communication, dissemination, and exploitation activities related to the research results.

Reporting & Dissemination Obligations

Beneficiaries must make proactive efforts to share all relevant results, on a royalty-free basis and in a timely manner, with other grants awarded under the same call.
Beneficiaries are required to acknowledge these obligations in their proposal and the grant agreement.
For exploitation, beneficiaries must make all relevant results available for reuse under fair, reasonable, and non-discriminatory conditions, using a trusted repository.
If the purpose of exploiting results is related to standardisation, beneficiaries must grant a non-exclusive, royalty-free licence to these results.
For linked actions, mutual access to background and results of ongoing and closed linked actions must be ensured if necessary for task implementation or exploitation.

Support Available

SESAR 3 JU Call Helpdesk ([email protected]) for enquiries. Submit enquiries at least 2 weeks before the deadline for a timely response.
Online Manual, Horizon Europe Programme Guide, Funding & Tenders Portal FAQ, Research Enquiry Service, National Contact Points (NCPs), Enterprise Europe Network, IT Helpdesk, and European IPR Helpdesk are available for guidance and support.

Evaluation Criteria

Award Criteria

Proposals will be evaluated based on the award criteria described in Annex D of the Horizon Europe Work Programme General Annexes and subsection 1.4 of the SESAR 3 JU Bi-Annual Work Programme (BAWP) 2024-2025.

Scoring & Thresholds

Grants will be awarded based on ranking, but also to the highest-ranked proposals within topics/work areas to ensure a balanced portfolio, provided they meet the minimum thresholds.

Expected Impact

Support the evolution of the future regulatory framework for a Digital European Sky.
Provide insight and solutions regarding the impact of automation (AI and non-AI based) on the human role in ATM.
Contribute to a harmonized application of airspace classifications across Europe.
Improve ATM safety through applications of Data4Safety.
Assess and consider the potential impact of proposed regulatory evolutions on military aviation operations and training.
Advance understanding and solutions for human operator fatigue and rostering practices.
Develop methods for evaluating safety requirements of ATM/ANS ground equipment and determining appropriate assurance levels.
Support the development of guidelines for the design of future AI systems in ATM.
Enhance the robustness and reliability of machine learning (ML) applications in ATM.
Support the certification of novel ATM (AI-based and non-AI-based) systems that enable higher levels of automation.
Develop a framework for effective Human-AI Teaming in aviation.
Contribute to Explainable Artificial Intelligence (XAI) in ATM.
Innovate methodologies for ATM safety, security, and resilience.
Develop and assess future applications/use cases for the Data4Safety Programme.
Automate the security risk assessment (SecRA) process in aviation.
Explore climate and environmentally driven route charging mechanisms to incentivize reduced climate impact.

Compliance & Special Requirements

Regulatory & Programmatic Compliance

Projects must adhere to the objectives set in Council Regulation (EU) 2021/2085, which established the SESAR 3 Joint Undertaking.
Activities must align with the SRIA (Strategic Research and Innovation Agenda) and the European ATM Master Plan.
Projects concerning 'Applications of Data4Safety' (point 11 in scope) must consider Regulation (EU) No 376/2014, which governs safety reporting in civil aviation.
Projects involving AI (points 5, 6, 7, 8, 9 in scope) must consider the EASA Basic Regulation (Regulation (EU) 2018/1139) and relevant EASA AI Roadmap and concept papers.

Ethical & Data Privacy Standards

Research involving fatigue detection technologies (e.g., wireless EEG, speech analysis, webcam-based eye tracking) must carefully consider ethical and data privacy issues, particularly adherence to GDPR guidelines.
There's an expectation to balance the benefits of advanced monitoring technologies with safeguarding individual privacy.

Intellectual Property (IP) Policies

Results intended for standardisation purposes must be licensed non-exclusively and royalty-free.
All relevant results generated must be made available for reuse under fair, reasonable, and non-discriminatory conditions through a well-defined mechanism using a trusted repository.

Risk Management & Security

Proposals must define mechanisms for guaranteeing the absence of conflict of interests.
For ML/AI-based systems, cybersecurity aspects must be considered to prevent, detect, mitigate, and respond to attacks, ensuring cyber-resilience.

Unique Aspects & Strategic Opportunities

The call explicitly requires proposals to consider and assess the potential impact of regulatory evolutions on military aviation, specifically military operations and training.
Emphasis is placed on multi-disciplinary approaches involving safety, human performance, legal, insurance, and regulatory expertise.
Projects should be use-case driven.
The research should aim at providing factual scientific data to substantiate intervention strategies (e.g., rulemaking, implementation support, oversight).
Close coordination with EASA is expected for specific AI-related research elements to ensure complementarity and consistency.
Collaboration between researchers, technology developers, and regulatory bodies is strongly recommended.

Grant Details